Alonso: “I’m extremely happy; I drive for days like this”

Fernando Alonso had already secured a solid seventh place in Monaco’s qualifying session, setting himself up for a chance to earn his first points of the season. But his position improved even further after Hamilton was handed a three-place penalty for impeding Verstappen - now the Spanish driver will start from sixth on the grid.

Risks pay off for Alonso

“The fifth place in Imola was more important... but inside the car, both were at the absolute limit,“ Alonso reflected after stepping out of his car. ”Monaco brings more adrenaline because of the circuit’s nature and the risks you take every lap. In Q1, I was out until the final minute - starting my lap in Rascasse, I was sitting 16th. But this is Monaco - the best Saturday of the year. There’s adrenaline, excitement, and pure joy behind the wheel. Days like these keep me racing. Finishing a lap after taking so many risks feels like a reward”.

His satisfaction was evident: “I’m extremely happy. Practice session three wasn’t great - I was 12th, and Lance was 15th. We lost competitiveness compared to Friday, and heading into qualifying, I was concerned about our performance. But making it back to Q3 in seventh place feels great. When you give it everything, you feel proud of the team and yourself. You go to bed happy. Sunday is a whole new day.”

Alonso freely admits taking plenty of risks: “In Q2 and Q3, you can push a little harder when you’re not fighting for the championship or needing points. You don’t mind going off-track or ending up against the wall - even if you don’t want to, you put that thought aside. You go for the lap with a freedom you wouldn’t have if you were battling for the title.”

Looking ahead to Sunday, with two mandatory pit stops: “On a typical Monaco weekend, I’d say seventh is the best possible result. But the new rules open up strategy. Those outside the top 10 will try alternative approaches - they’re out of the points and need to take a chance, which makes sense. And if luck is on their side, they can bump you out of the points. In some ways, I wish Monaco had the old rules this time - seventh place would be guaranteed. But this weekend, we could get lucky and finish fourth or fifth, or we could be unlucky and miss out on points again. We’ll give it our best, and we’ll be proud either way, luck or no luck.”

How to watch the 2025 Monaco Grand Prix

The 2025 Monaco Grand Prix is scheduled to take place on Sunday, May 25 with the race starting at 9 a.m. ET / 6 a.m. PT.

Viewers in the United States can follow the action on ESPN as well as fuboTV and F1 TV.

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